


Just Like a High School Romance

by Metallicafanforever



Category: Iron Maiden
Genre: Budding Relationship, Dave/Adrian, M/M, Young Dads, awkward exchanges, m/m - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-04
Updated: 2017-08-04
Packaged: 2018-11-08 21:16:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11090076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Metallicafanforever/pseuds/Metallicafanforever
Summary: "I really hope that you're starin' at that bloke, and not the children."





	1. Love at First Cigarette?

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I'm sorry I haven't posted in a little while, I've been going through some personal stuff. I'm taking a small break from B-52, just to work on some other ideas (including this one) that I've had. I hope you enjoy!

"A bloody note Bruce. A fuckin' note is all I got!" Adrian said, slamming down his now empty beer bottle onto the sticky bartop.  
"Well what did the note say then?" Bruce asked, downing the rest of his beer and flagging the bartender for another.  
"All it fuckin' said was 'Ade I'm done. I don't want to do this with you anymore. Keep Nat, I'm not a fit mother.' She fuckin' left me. Nathalie left me to raise Natasha by myself! I'm eighteen years old and I have to raise a fuckin' child!" Adrian said, rather yelled, downing a quarter of his new beer. 

"Ade I think you need to keep it down a little," Bruce said, acknowledging all of the stares from around the room, "people are starin' at you. Anyways you'll make a great father. I'll be here to help. Speaking of Nat, where is she?"

"My parents house. They can't get enough of her." Adrian chuckled, as he took another long sip of beer. "Boy I though Canadians were supposed to be nice," Ade remarked, causing Bruce to start laughing mid-sip, beer shooting from his nose,"I damn sure wouldn't 'ave married her if I didn't think she would be nice to me. God that's what I get for not trusting the good 'ol Brits enough to marry one."

"Hey we're not all bad! I, for one, am a Brit. And I'm 'ere talkin' to you now ain't I?" Bruce seemed offended as he wiped the dripping beer from his chin.  
"It'll be alright Ade. You'll do great as a father."  
\------------  
'Fuck. Hangovers.' Adrian said silently, fearing the sound of his own voice would hurt his head.  
He got up and stumbled silently to the shower, careful not to wake up Natasha.  
'How'd Nat get back in the fuckin' house?' Ade clearly was a little fuzzy on what happened last night, only remembering his and Bruce's beer chugging competition, which he had one, and then the rest was rather fuzzy. 

"Ade  
Don't worry dear, I put Nat in bed at around 7:30 A.M., so she wouldn't wake you up. Her formula and bag is on the door to the nursery. Make sure you take some aspirin.  
-Mom"  
A note stuck to his bathroom mirror read.  
'Well parenting an infant alone at eighteen? Let's see how that fuckin' goes.' Adrian said to himself as he got into the shower.  
\------------  
|Five years later|

"Well Nattie my dear! Haven't you turned out just like daddy?" Adrian beamed at his daughter, who had picked out her favourite Judas Priest shirt, which just so happened to sport their newest release, British Steel.  
"Well daddy, you're the only one I ever spend time with, so of course I turned out like you!" Natasha said, spinning to show her father her outfit, which consisted of the Priest shirt, a dark red, almost burgundy coloured skirt, and a navy blue cardigan.  
"You look dashing my darling!" Adrian said, sweeping his daughter up for a hug in his arms.  
"Now let me get a picture of you so I can show grandma!"  
"But daddy, I don't want to take a picture. I don't want to be late for school!" Natasha grumbled, pulling her father's hand towards the front door.  
"Okay, okay we'll go my dear." Adrain says, grabbing Natasha's bag and escorting her out the door. 

The drive to school was brief, only five minutes. They would have walked, but it was raining in sheets outside. Typical England in the winter. 

"Are you nervous for your first day, love?" Adrian asked, helping Natasha out of his pickup truck. 

"Just a little daddy. I don't want to have to do to much talking." Natasha said, bringing a whole new resemblance to Adrian, one that he had hoped she didn't pick up on. 

"Mmhm, you're so much like me, my darling." Adrian said, taking her hand and leading her into the school.

"I'm glad!" Natasha gave Adrian's hand a quick squeeze as she said this. 

'She's way to fuckin' smart for her age'  
"Have a wonderful day my dear!" Adrian gave her one last hug and a kiss on the head and sent her on her way.  
\------------  
'Late. Late you fuckin' arse. The first day of school and you're late to pick your daughter up!'

"Late on the first day are we?" A low voice, with a slight lisp asked, coming in the door immediately after Adrian. 

"Yes, great parenting I know. And I'm guessing you're late as well, seeing as you're coming in from behind me?" Adrian asked, turning around to face the man.  
The man was a little shorter than Adrian, and had this shade of obnoxiously perfect, golden hair, that looked so soft and fluffy. The man's cheeks were full, and a beautiful shade of pink. He had slightly feminine looking features, contrasted by a definitely not feminine body. The tight Priest shirt he was wearing (what a coincidence!) left little to the imagination. His jeans were also impossibly tight. Besides a slight bend in his waist, he was 100% masculine. 

"Yeah, the boss let me off late, and then I got stuck in traffic. The name's Dave." Dave said, reaching his hand out to shake Adrian's. 

"Nice to meet you, Dave," Adrian said, taking his hand and giving it a shake,"I'm Adrian." 

After they had shook hands, neither of them had let go, they just stood there, awkwardly holding hands, neither one of them wanting to break the slightly awkward exchange. 

"Daddy!" The sound of Natasha's voice ripped Adrian and Dave from any thought, and caused Dave to snap his hand back to his side. 

"Hello love!" Adrian beamed at his daughter, picking her up and giving her a big hug. 

"Daddy I want you to meet my friend!" Natalie said, grabbing Adrian by the hand and leading him into the classroom. 

"Afternoon Mr. Smith," the teacher, Mr. McBrain bellowed, walking over to Adrian to shake his hand, "I'm Mr. McBrain, Nicko if you will. I should hope that the lateness will not be a persistent thing, otherwise we'll have to arrange a ride home for Natasha. Oh and same goes for you Mr. Murray." Mr. McBrain switched his attention over to Dave, shaking his hand as well. 

"It won't be a frequent thing, traffic was bad today. My apologies. It won't-"  
"Dad! Come meet Tash. My first real friend!" Natasha chirped from across the room, interrupting her father.  
With a few quick strides, Adrian crossed the room, his full attention brought to his daughter. He squatted down to get closer to the height of the two small children, and Dave found himself staring absentmindedly at him, perplexed by how beautiful he looked.  
'A man. Beautiful. What the bloody hell is wrong with me. I'm not gay. I had a wife for Christ's sake. But holy shit. He just looks so good. And his voice. It's so beautiful, deep and slightly gravely. Fuckin' hell. I just might be falling for him.' 

"I really hope that you're starin' at the bloke, and not the children." Nicko's voice, with a hint of laughter tore Dave out of his thoughts.  
Dave quickly went red realizing what he meant, he had gone half hard thinking about Adrian. 

"Oh bloody fuckin' hell," Dave covered his face with his hands, "Tasha, love, I'm going outside for a minute. I'll be right at the front door if you need anything." 

"Okay daddy! Don't catch a cold." Tasha quickly turned her attention back to Adrian, who she seemed to like. 

Dave turned and exited the classroom, and exited the school, finding a seat on the bench out front.  
'Well this is just fuckin' great. Nicko fuckin' saw me staring at Adrian and of course I just so happened to get hard. Bloody hell how can this day get worse.'  
Dave pulled out a box of cigarettes from his back pocket and began trying to light one, but due to his lack of jacket in the rain, his hands were too cold to get the lighter to light. 

"Need a hand?" The sound of Adrian's voice made Dave jump a little in his seat on the bench. 

"Fuckin' hell! You scared me! I didn't even hear you come outside!"

Adrian came and sat beside Dave, so close that their thighs touched. The contact all of the sudden made Dave feel a little dizzy, and his breath began to hitch in his lungs. He gave into an involuntary shiver from the cold, having completely forgotten about a jacket. 

"Are you cold?" Adrian asked, a genuine look a concern in his eyes.  
Dave just shook his head no, earning an eye roll from Adrian, who proceeded to stand up and remove his jacket, revealing his toned body through a tight, black long sleeved shirt. 

"Here, I don't want you catching a cold." Adrian said softly, handing Dave the jacket. 

"Thank you." Dave pulled on the jacket, intoxicated by its warmth and smell. It smelt impossibly masculine, like a wood fire, cigarettes, a bit of laundry soap, and whatever natural smell Adrian gave off. 

Adrian said nothing in return, just gave him a small smile, and removed the lighter from Dave's hands. 

"Still need a light?"  
Dave pulled out the box of cigarettes and offered Adrian one, who accepted it and gave Dave a grateful smile. With an effortless flick, he had the lighter lit and had lit his and Dave's smokes. 

Dave studied the way Adrian's mouth looked as he brought the cigarette up to his lips, the way they closed around the end of it, puckering. The way his cheeks slightly hollowed when he went to take a drag, and the way he slightly parted his mouth the release the smoke.  
Adrian caught Dave staring, but said nothing about it. Just gave him a smile. Dave felt a warm hand lightly on his thigh, and brought his own free hand to lace his fingers into Adrian's. At this, Adrian absolutely beamed.  
Dave blushed slightly, and turned a little, looking a little bit to the left of Adrian's. His gaze quickly fell back onto Adrian's, then his lips, and then once more to meet his eyes.  
Adrian gently wrapped his right arm around Dave's head, gently guiding Dave's lips to his own. They shared a light kiss, full of excitement and insecurity. When they broke the kiss, both boys looked radiant. They stayed there, fingers interlaced, in silence, until both of them finished off their cigarettes.  
This time it was Dave who pulled Adrian in for a kiss, when they had both stood up from the bench.  
Adrian's left arm snaked around Dave's waist, his palm flat against the small of Dave's back. His other arm gently cradled Dave's face. Both of Dave's arms were draped over each of Adrian's shoulders. Dave's tongue had just slipped into Adrian's mouth, when they were interrupted by a booming laugh, followed by some giggling.  
"Daddy what're you doing with Nattie's dad?" Tasha said, causing the two men to split apart in an instant. 

"They were kissing!" Natasha exclaimed, like it was a fantastic revelation. 

For once, Adrian was at a loss for words, he just stood there, beaming, but also turning bright red. 

"Uh yeah. We were um, kissing." Dave said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. 

"I'm glad! Adrian is really nice!" 

Natasha and Nicko were relatively silent, aside from the residing laughter. Nicko gave the two a thumbs up and a wink, and escorted the children inside to get their bags. 

"I'll walk you over to your car, I wouldn't want you to have to walk over all cold and whatever." Adrian said, rather mumbled to Dave. He was still beaming and looked like a little boy, excited about his newest toy plane or his new comic book. 

"I'd like that." Dave took Adrian's hand in his own and lead him over to his truck. 

They walked in silence, fingers interlaced, relishing in the silence. 

"Well here it is," Dave gestured at the red pickup truck that lay in front of them. 

"No bloody way! What's this a '71 Dodge D100?" Adrian said, looking absolutely shocked. 

"Yeah, why?" 

"Mine's a '67 D100!" 

"A man of refined tastes I see" Dave chucked as he said this. 

Adrian gave Dave another quick kiss, noting that the kids must be about to come out.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" Dave asked, pulling away as the kids got closer. 

"Of course." Adrian smiled and walked away, not even bothering to take his jacket. 

'Just like a high school romance.' Dave thought as he watched Adrian walk away.


	2. There's Nothing I Wouldn't Do

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "There's nothing I wouldn't do for you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm not dead, I promise. I've been working a lot on Wattpad, and I have completely forgotten to post my stuff here as well. You can find all of my stories on Wattpad and Archive of Our Own, all under the same titles. I hope you enjoy this continuation, and I'll try to post more of it more often! Love always, Kyleigh.

|Dave|

"Daddy, since you were kissing Nattie's dad, does that mean you like him?" I don't know what shocked me the most, the question, or the fact that it came from my barely-five-years-old daughter.

"I don't think so, no." I tried to keep my attention to the road, fearing my daughter will see how embarrassed I am about this, it's completely irrational, but it's here nonetheless.

"Why not?" Her rather confused eyes are burning into the side of my face, but I still refuse to look at her.

"Because, love, he was probably not thinking straight when he kissed me." I didn't realize that what I just blurted out seemed like the truth to me, however, a rather harsh truth I'd much rather not face.

"But daddy, he gave you his jacket." She gave the sleeve a little tug as she said this, and I finally brought my eyes to meet hers.

The poor girl, she looked so confused, and for lack of better words, hurt by this statement.

"Sweetheart, people change their minds at the drop of a hat. For all I know, he could hate me tomorrow, or call me bad things." I seriously love and hate the fact that talking to my five year old daughter is helping me realize what I believe is true.

"Daddy, he won't."

"How do you know, love?" My attention is flickering from the road to my daughter, paying enough attention to both, so I don't kill the both of us.

"He's rather lonely."

"How so?" I feel bad for intruding on him like this, but I'm rather curious to know what Tash knows.

"His wife left him when Nattie was a baby. He raised her by himself."

'Sounds like a similar situation, apart from the fact that she's probably still alive.'

"He hasn't had a girlfriend since Nattie's mum, he has put all of his love into his music and Nattie. She said he gets really lonely when she stays over at his parent's house."

"That is quite sad, but I really doubt he would date me."

"Please daddy? You're lonely too! I know you think you're a bad person for what you did to mum, but you aren't. Dad, you are the best person I know. You deserve to be happy! Please give it a shot?" Her pleading, hopeful eyes are tugging at me, finally convincing me to cave.

"I'll make you a deal dear. If the opportunity ever comes up, if 'e ever asks, I'll say yes. But only, only if 'e asks." I only made this proposition because I'm almost positive he'll never ask.

"Thank you, daddy. I just want to see you happy, you're always doing your best to make me happy, I think it's time you made yourself happy too." She gives me this huge grin, spreading ear-to-ear, I can tell I said the right thing.

I just gave her a smile, staying relatively silent the rest of the way home, occasionally laughing at her, and singing along to the Judas Priest cassette, British Steel.

 

|Adrian|

Well that was an interesting experience. I kissed someone for the first time in five years, and it just so happened to be a bloke. I mean he's not the first guy I kissed, I did a lot of experimenting in high school. It's just a weird experience, considering I was married to a woman, and the last person I had kissed (until now) was a woman. It brings back a lot of emotions and memories that I had forgotten up until now.

I wonder how he feels about this, I wonder if he thinks it was a one time thing. I hope to God he doesn't, I don't want it to just be a one time thing. I can't wait to see him again tomorrow, maybe get to know him better. I wonder if he's married. Oh god if he's married I'll feel so stupid, pining over a married man.

"Dad," Nat piped from her spot beside me, "are you and Dave going to date?" I looked at her, a little shocked at the blunt question.

"Maybe, love. I 'ope so. He's a nice bloke." I her a smile as I said this, she didn't say anything else.   
\------------

"Dave, why 're you 'ere?" I asked in a small, quiet voice as he slipped through my bedroom door.

"Why wouldn't I be?" He said, slowly crossing the room to my bed. "It's where I belong."

He sat down on the side opposite where I was laying, and slowly leaned over, pressing his lips to mine.

I brought my hands up to his hair, pulling him closer to me.

He climbed onto my lap, grinding on me and leaning down to kiss me.

I slipped my tongue into his mouth, savouring his taste.

He climbed off me, removing his shirt and his jeans, stripping down to just his boxers. I was already in my boxers, because I was ready to sleep.

He climbed back onto my lap, resuming his grinding down onto me, the friction between our growing hardnesses driving both of us crazy, pulling out sounds and moans I never thought possible from the both of us.

He stopped his grinding, I gave a disappointed groan, only to be interrupted by him pulling down my boxers and shoving his face between my thighs.

He shocked me by gliding his tongue all around my entrance, and finally forcing his tongue inside. 

He resumed doing that, getting me all slicked up, while I sucked on three of his fingers. When he determined I had sucked his fingers enough, he brought them to my entrance, replacing his tongue, and sliding two of them in. He brought his lips back up to mine and when my tongue breeched his lips, I could taste myself. A thing I've never experienced before.

He moved his fingers around a little bit, in a desperate search for my prostate. He found it, forcing a loud moan from me, that he quickly silenced with a kiss.

He added a third finger and continued stretching me out, and occasionally stroking that spot.  
Once he had stretched me out, he removes his fingers and spat in his hand, lubing up his dick. He pushed into me, sending a shot of pleasure through all of my nerves.   
\------------

I woke up with a shock, realizing that it was a dream. I felt a cold, wet spot in my boxers, and quickly realized I had come. I had a fucking wet dream at twenty-three years old. I don't know what I'm embarrassed most about, the fact that I had the dream, or the fact that it was about Dave.

No time to think about that now, I have a daughter to get ready for school.   
\----------

Today is bring a parent to work day, so naturally I came with my favourite guitar, my Ibanez Destroyer II, the DT-100 model. It's a beautiful shade of red, cherry, but slightly darker. I also brought a small, battery powered amp. I'm planning on performing only one or two songs, I'll definitely play "Silver and Gold", and I might also do "The Lion". Those are my two personal favourites.

I wonder what Dave does for a living, he didn't say anything about it yesterday. Maybe he's a musician as well. I kind of get that vibe from him.

Natasha and I are currently sitting on the ground, singing some Led Zeppelin. She started it by singing "Black Dog", and we've just continued through the album. We've just finished "Stairway to Heaven", when Dave walked in the room, one hand holding Tasha's, and the other on an acoustic guitar case. I knew it! He's a musician! My intuition has never led me wrong.

Natasha, of course, ran up to Dave and gave him a hug as soon as he put his guitar down, and quickly hugging Tasha and walking off to the other side of the room.

"Fancy seeing you 'ere. Early too!" Dave said to me, a grin cutting into his cheeks.

"You're early too!" I say, getting up from my spot on the ground to pull him into a hug. The only other parent here is engaged in a deep conversation with Nicko, so we don't worry too much about being seen.

"'ow are you?" He said, face still buried in my shoulder.

"I'm good now that you're here. I'm really glad to see you." I say, pulling out of the hug and taking the guitar case from him, setting it down with his stuff on the other side of the room. 

"So do you have any plans tonight?" I asked, a little embarrassed.

"No, why? Trying to ask me out?" He beamed at me when he said this, a clear sign he won't object.

"Uh, maybe. I was wondering if maybe you and Tasha would like to come over for dinner."

"Of course we would! I didn't know you cooked." His white teeth are on full display, he's smiling so big it looks like it hurts.

"There's a lot you probably don't know about me" I gave him a mischievous grin as I said this, sitting right up beside him, our thighs touching.

"So you play guitar as well?" I ask, nodding towards the case beside us.

"Yeah, I'm guessing you do as well?"

"Yeah, I'm in a band."

"Oh that's awesome! What's it called?" He looks so excited and curious, he's like a little ball of joy.

"It's called ASAP, which stands for Adrian Smith and Project. It's a group of us session musicians who wanted to do something bigger and better." It's really not anything fantastic, we're only planning on releasing "Silver and Gold" and then calling it a day.

"What is your position in the band?" He leans his head on my shoulder, cuddling into me a bit.

"I do lead and rhythm guitar parts, and lead vocals." I'm really quite shy about my voice, I don't especially like broadcasting my voice.

"Lead vocals! That's so awesome. Do you think you could maybe sing for me today? I was gonna play 'Stairway to Heaven', but I didn't want to have to sing." He looks a little nervous asking, and I can see him starting to blush.

"Of course, it's funny you'd ask about that song, Nat and I were just singin' it before you came in."

"So you'll do it?" 

"Of course I will. There's almost nothing I wouldn't do for you." He smiled at me, I smiled back and gave him a kiss.


	3. The Lion, the Whispers, and the Stairway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "There's a lady who's sure..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm so, so sorry I haven't been posting the last week, I've been really busy with work and with volunteering. I'll try to update most, if not all of my stories in the next couple of days, but for now, I hope you enjoy this update! Also, if you like the story, or if you want me to write more, please let me know, otherwise I'll put it lower on my priority list :)   
> Love always, Kyleigh

|Dave|

Adrian is up now, he and Natasha are at the front of the class, he's sitting on a stool with his guitar, ready to play. I'm excited to see him perform, and excited to hear him sing.

"My dad is a musician! He mostly works at the studio, um, what is it called again?"

Adrian gives a small chuckle before helping his daughter out.

"I'm a session musician, I record the guitar and bass guitar parts for artists who don't have someone to record with. Me and some of my friends who are also session musicians put together a small band, and we're releasing an album, 'Silver and Gold'." I could listen to him talk for a century and still not be tired of his voice. It's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard!

"Dad, what are you going to play? Please play my two favourites!" I can see how excited her father's music makes her, and it's absolutely adorable.

"Okay, I'll play your two favourites. I'll start off with the title track, 'Silver and Gold.'"

He started playing, his fingers dancing across the fretboard.

"Darkness descending  
Night coming down in the city  
She walks the streets in search of fortune..."

He soon finished the first song, launching into the second, after a brief introduction.

"This one's called 'The Lion.'"

"Late at night  
Rain falling down  
Sets my mind wandering  
Took a drive on a highway  
I saw you standing in the rain  
Destiny was calling me  
I would never be the same..."

I would never be the same either, as cheesy as that sounds, not after him.

It wasn't long before he was done that, either. I wish it could've never ended, though. He sounded so beautiful and so hot! His voice is amazing, I can't wait until he sings for me.

When he was finished, everyone clapped for him, and I clapped extra loud.

"Was it any good?" He came and sat back next to me, our backs against the wall.

"Any good? It was amazing!" I gave his hand a squeeze as I said this, I would've kissed him but we're surrounded by others.

"Thanks, love. Oh also, I was thinking, if you're gonna do the solo in Stairway, maybe you should use my electric. The intro is the only part of the song that really sounds good on an acoustic." He moves just a little closer as he says this, putting his right arm around my shoulders, and I can't help but lean into him, my head on his shoulder/neck area.

"Oh, okay. Are you sure I can use it?" I don't want to do anything to make him uncomfortable, and I know how cautious I am about lending my instruments.

"Of course, I trust you." I just sigh and lean more into him, I'm going to be last, they wanted to save the musical performances for first and for last.

About twenty minutes pass before Adrian and I go up to the front of the room, him carrying my acoustic and me carrying his Ibanez.

I sit on one of the stools, putting the strap to the guitar on, resting the guitar as close to me as I can. Adrian and I have a plan, when the acoustic part finishes, he'll take the acoustic from my lap so I can play the electric part. 

"So this is my dad, his name's Dave, and he's also a musician. He doesn't 'ave a band currently, so he's doing session stuff like Adrian." Tash gave me a bright smile as she said this, she's excited to watch us play.

"Uh, yeah. I'm Dave, Tash already introduced me bloody well, but uh, I'll be playing 'Stairway to Heaven' by Led Zeppelin, and I can't sing at all, so I've asked Adrian to help out. I uh, hope you enjoy." Fuck. I have never been the most eloquent, but even that was low for me. I'm also horrible with social situations.

"Ready, babe?" Adrian whispered, so low that only I heard.

I smiled at the term 'babe', I haven't heard that since Tamar passed, and I couldn't be happier that it's Adrian using it.

I gave a nod in response, and started finger-picking the haunting intro to the song. Adrian watched my every move.

"...

There's a lady who's sure  
All that glitters is gold  
And she's buying a stairway to heaven.  
When she gets there she knows  
If the stores are all closed  
With a word she can get what she came for.  
Ooh ooh and she's buying a stairway to heaven..."

I almost lose my place, he sounds so good. All of the raspiness that's usually present in his voice is gone, without a trace. I'm not sure how he does it.

"...

There's a sign on the wall  
But she wants to be sure  
'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings.  
In a tree by the brook  
There's a songbird who sings,  
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven..."

He looks at me, silent temporarily, focusing on me in my natural element, playing music. He gives me a big smile, before resuming singing.

"...

Ooh, it makes me wonder,  
Ooh, it makes me wonder..."

His voice is giving me chills, haunting me to the bone in such an eerie way that I can't describe.

"...

There's a feeling I get  
When I look to the west,  
And my spirit is crying for leaving.  
In my thoughts I have seen  
Rings of smoke through the trees,  
And the voices of those who standing looking..."

Another small pause in the vocals, and he's looking at me once more, gaze unflinching.

"...

Ooh, it makes me wonder,  
Ooh, it really makes me wonder..."

Fuck, this man is actually scaring me right now. I'm not sure why. I think it's because of how much emotion he's putting into this performance.

"...

And it's whispered that soon, If we all call the tune  
Then the piper will lead us to reason.  
And a new day will dawn  
For those who stand long  
And the forests will echo with laughter..."

I feel so connected to him right now, it's like we're sharing energy, and suddenly I realize... This is what was missing. He is what was missing.

He leans forward, ready to take the guitar immediately after I finish these few chords.

He takes it from my hands, I immediately turn on the volume on the guitar and start playing.

"...

If there's a bustle in your hedgerow,  
Don't be alarmed now,  
It's just a spring clean for the May queen.  
Yes, there are two paths you can go by  
But in the long run  
There's still time to change the road you're on..."

This is where I'm meant to be, I can feel it. I know he can too. The eerie sense of this shared energy or whatever is unlike anything I've ever experienced.

"...

And it makes me wonder..."

He leans in and whispers "You feel it too?"

I nod in reply.

"...

Your head is humming and it won't go  
In case you don't know,  
The piper's calling you to join him,  
Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow,  
And did you know  
Your stairway lies on the whispering wind..."

At this point, he plays the acoustic as a rhythm guitar, while I move on to the solo.

I play it note for note.

"...

And as we wind on down the road  
Our shadows taller than our soul.  
There walks a lady we all know  
Who shines white light and wants to show  
How ev'rything still turns to gold.  
And if you listen very hard  
The tune will come to you at last.  
When all are one and one is all  
To be a rock and not to roll..."

I join him in singing the last verse, I don't sing as well as he does, but it's not too bad if I'm not doing the lead vocals.

I play the last few notes...

"...

And she's buying a stairway to heaven."

Jesus, he holds that note for ever it seems! Once his voice has faded away, the parents and students sat in awe for a few moments, before bursting into applause. That's when I noticed the other teachers, staff, and older students watching outside the open door and the open windows that look into the hallway, also clapping.

I look back at Adrian, who absolutely beams at me. I give him a toothy grin in return.


End file.
